It`s amazing how this little town message board is so divided, and tension and dislike for it`s members is begining to show. Just like in many workplaces fellow workers that once were friends no longer speak to each other. Neighbors no longer are civil to each other, because some have a Recall Walker sign in their front yard. Familes are divided and argue at what once were happy get togethers.All because of one little man. Some have drank the "$cott Walker Kool-aide" and feel it`s fine to take from the lower and middle class and give to the rich. It`s fine to fly around the country collecting millions from billionaires.While the citizens of Wisconsin, who at one time were friends , argue and fight, King $cott Walker sits on his pile of blood money in his mansion in Madison and smiles. He knows he`ll get recalled , but will probably win the recall election. Why? , Because no honest canidate with integrity can amass the millions that will be needed to fight $cott Walker and his out of state billionaire buddies.

I said right from the start Walker would divide this state, the work place and homes. Granted changes needed to be made, however he went about it way too fast, way too under handed. When blood is shed over his politics he will be the one looking in the mirror every morning and staring into the eyes of a murderer.

I think I have a pretty good comparison of how we went about fixing our budget issue.

When most people decide they're overweight and going to fix it, they diet and maybe exercise more. They work the weight off over time. If it's really bad, they might choose to have surgery to help them lose the weight be reducing intake, etc. No matter what, no one with realistic expectations plans to lose 50 pounds in a week.

Our budget got "fat" over a number of years, much the same way most Americans have. However, rather than coming up with a rational plan to bring it under control and work our way into fixing the problem over time. We had surgery, but the surgery was to cut off our arm at the elbow. We then stepped on the scale and said see, look how much better our weight is. Unfortunately, we're now disabled and have a much more difficult time doing many of the things we need and/or want to in the future...

Based on one of your points Doyle must have been an amazing governor because Wisconsin had a much lower unemployment rate than the rest of the nation when Walker took office. Don't claim Walker is doing well because unemployment is below the nation when it has been since before he took office. If we're going with that line of thinking, he's doing horribly because the rest of the nation is improving at a much higher rate...

None of the stuff you said about me is true. I work for a private company and none of the stuff Walker has done will affect me. However, contrary to what you said, I care about other people and think what he is doing will hurt a lot of people while helping the rich get richer.

As far as your "truth" comment goes, I suggest you spend your time refuting the content of what I've said instead of just calling me names.

Have you followed-up with the Ron Mcallister/Lincoln Hills incident? Have you contacted the DOC to see if they will provide a statment re: the issue? Have you determined if their internal investigation has concluded and what actions they have taken as a result?

Now that all the hub-bub and one-sided propaganda have subsided I'd think it's a perfect time to contact Mcallister's supervisor to find out the other side of the story. Have you contacted him? What about his superiors? What about Mcallisters co-workers who may not share the same viewpoint as him - have you indentified them or made an attempt to interview them?

After getting the other side's story how about an in-depth, challangeing follow-up with Mcallister for a rebutal?

please provide answers, thanks.

signed - "seeking the truth"

BTW......still waithing on this, still seeking the truth! Anyone who works for the media care to comment the their follow-up plans for this story?

So, assuming the recall goes through, who are the Democrats going to post up as the challenger? Barrett who lost the vote in 2010 or Falk who lost in 2002? Cullen has pulled out. A lot of effort was put into recalling Holperin only to have insufficient opposition in the election. Why is this going to be any different with Walker? It will just be a big waste of time and money.

Good Point. I'm not clear as to why the recall supporters would even bother to support the recall unless they had someone who actually was a valid candidate if they are really concerned about moving the state forward. It's just a huge waste of money just to prove a point, but I guess that's the standard that has been set in place. Who is their best option, Kathleen Falk? I live in the socialist republic of Dane County and many of the people here don't even like her and she was the Dane County supervisor for the past few years.

What it comes down to is what has been set in place by Walker's predecessors as a spend more and lets worry about it later attitude. It's not sustainable. And sorry that Walker is the first Governor in a while that has had the courage to confront the problem instead of continuing to let it build. Speaking of courage, lets not forget about the senators who fled to Illinois instead of doing their job for their constitutients and arguing against Walker's proposal in the proper environment. That sounds like more of something my 3 year old son would do.

For those of you in support of Walker, it's useless to fight this fight in a community like Tomahawk where the blue collar worker is the overwhelming majority. Everyone has an opinion whether it's reasonable or not.

But I believe this story was about the union worker who had to change his clothes. Was there any follow up on that?

So you know: We have had a good contact at the state Department of Corrections who has answered questions whenever we've asked them, particularly during the time decisions were being made on whether to keep Lincoln Hills open. We've contacted her several times concerning the follow-up on the incident and questions about overtime at the facility, but have been told determinations/policy were still being finalized. She's always been very accommodating when she has information. The Leader made contacts Jan. 7, Jan. 9, Jan. 17, Feb. 11 and just did so again today (Feb. 28). When we hear something, we'll be certain to publish it in the Tomahawk Leader. -Kathy Tobin, Editor, Tomahawk Leader

TOMAHWK LEADER EXCLUSIVE: The Wisconsin Department of Corrections (DOC) has instituted a new overtime policy, or what is now called the “Additional Hours of Work” policy, at institutions, including Lincoln Hills School and Copper Lake School, juvenile correctional facilities in Irma. Following an inquiry by the Tomahawk Leader about a possible forced overtime situation at the state institutions, we’ve learned a new policy has been instituted: Now, an employee’s time off for vacation or sick leave does not count toward the 40 hours required for premium overtime. And, employees who accept, decline or do not respond to an overtime call are rotated to the bottom of the list so the next employee(s) on the list receives the next call for OT opportunities. Previously overtime was only offered in seniority order. Now overtime is offered to (the) next eligible employee regardless of his or her seniority date. Look for the entire story in the March 6, 2012, Tomahawk Leader, as well as a recap of the year-end status at the facilities.

More bad news from Walker$ term as governor.''(from jsonline)Wisconsin is the only state in the nation that had "statistically significant" job losses over the past 12 months, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.The state lost 23,900 jobs from March 2011 to March 2012.The majority - 17,800 - were government jobs. But Wisconsin also lost more private-sector jobs - 6,100 - than any other state over those same 12 months, the government data shows.Democrats have seized on GOP Gov. Scott Walker's job creation record as a central campaign theme in the June 5 recall election."Walker's jobs record is a total failure, and this is what happens when you pursue ideology instead of focusing on jobs," said Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, who is competing for the Democratic nomination against Walker."Every report card that comes in for Gov. Walker shows he's failing Wisconsin," said Kathleen Falk, the other leading Democratic challenger.The Walker administration downplayed the jobs numbers, saying other economic indicators such as the state's falling unemployment rate tell a positive story about Wisconsin's economy."As we continue to move forward, we will see improvement in the numbers," Department of Workforce Development secretary Reggie Newson said."There are a lot of other indicators that we see that show the governor's policies are working," said Newson, citing the jobless rate and business surveys projecting more hiring in 2012.The state unemployment rate is at its lowest since 2008, and DWD spokesman John Dipko called the separate data on job losses an outlier among good economic news.But Democrats noted that it was Walker himself who campaigned in 2010 on a pledge to add 250,000 private-sector jobs in his first term. (Wisconsin has added 5,900 private-sector jobs since he took office.)"That's the benchmark he set for himself," Barrett campaign spokesman Phil Walzak said of the jobs data.With the June 5 election only six weeks away, Walker and his opponents are telling dramatically different stories about the state's economic performance under his stewardship. A Walker campaign ad touts the drop in the unemployment rate and the addition of more than 17,000 jobs in January and February. "We're turning things around," the ad says.A new ad aired by the liberal Greater Wisconsin Political Fund attacks Walker's jobs record, citing the fact that no state lost more total jobs (public and private combined) than Wisconsin in 2011.According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 28 states had statistically significant changes in employment over the past 12 months - and Wisconsin was the only one of those that saw a decrease in total non-farm jobs, which includes both the public and private sector.The 23,900 jobs lost in Wisconsin was tops among the 50 states; no other state lost more than 3,500.

So what is the big deal, he is no different than every other politician. The only thing different here, is there are a few people that are trying to make a big deal out of it and with the help of the media are trying to make a issue out of what is normal operating procedure for politicians since the beginning of time.

You can always tell when a politician is lying, because his mouth is moving and it doesn't matter which party he or she belongs to.

The National Institutes of Health has just released the results of a $200 million research study completed under a grant to Johns Hopkins.The new study has found that women who carry a little extra weight live longer than the men who mention it.

How many more years of tax and spend with a deficit such as we had, could Wis. has tolerated before the entire state went broke?

Some times it takes a kick in the back side (or a bomb) to wake people up and realize what is happening !

The National Institutes of Health has just released the results of a $200 million research study completed under a grant to Johns Hopkins.The new study has found that women who carry a little extra weight live longer than the men who mention it.

He gives her a big kiss and hug, and she gives him $510,000.00 dollars, and pays no state corporate taxes!!!!! '

Have you seen the video? Scott Walker’s divisive ‘divide and conquer’ strategy caught on tape!

A new video has surfaced in which Gov. Walker tells billionaire businesswomen Diane Hendricks, owner of ABC Supply Company, that attacking collective bargaining rights for public employees is just the “first step” in his “divide and conquer” plot to bust unions.

Diane Hendricks recently gave Gov. Walker $500,000 dollars and is Gov. Walker’s single largest campaign contributor. What you may not know is that Hendricks’ company, ABC Supply, pays $0 in corporate state income taxes.

According to the report by Institute for Wisconsin’s Future, ABC Supply paid exactly $0.00 in state corporate income tax in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008, according to the state Department of Revenue. Tax data for more recent years were not available when the information was requested from the department.

Forbes magazine calls ABC Supply “the nation’s largest roofing, window and siding wholesale distributor.” It is estimated that annual sales approach $5 billion. While ABC Supply may be a huge money-maker for Hendricks, the Wisconsin corporate income tax returns she files claim the company makes not a penny in taxable profit.

Why is it that Gov. Walker publicly states that he does not want to destroy private sector unions, but the truth only comes out when he is kissing and hugging a billionaire campaign donor?

Just thinkin'.... What's this? Does the AFL-CIO now have a union for the habitually unemployed . I can picture the brass plaque on the wall "The International Brotherhood of Habitually Unemployed, Child Support Avoiders, System and Social Security Scammers who will crawl from under their rocks to work for Undocumented and Untaxable Cash, Non-Workers of America. That union must have a heck of a time collecting dues from it's members.

I used to live in Madison. Let me set the record straight. I used to work on campus and ANYTHING that was not in the dress code or had official UW-Madison logos on it was NOT ALLOWED. It didn't matter what it was, this included jewelry that was not Badger and was hanging or dangling. Only earring studs, wedding rings, and little nose rings and eyebrow studs were allowed, everything else HAD to be removed (including bracelets and in some positions they didn't even like watches and yeah, no lip studs or deliberately showing off your tongue piercing). This even extended to offensive tattoos (yes, if you couldn't cover it up you would not be hired or you would be FIRED and this was not too long ago), little beards (people with gotees had to wear beardnets on most of the jobs I worked), long hair (man OR woman), sideburns, headscarves or turbans (only Sikhs and moslem women were allowed to wear their traditional head coverings--everyone else had to wear the company hat or hairnet), miniskirts, shorts, etc. Logos besides the campus logo were NOT allowed on ANYTHING, even for Halloween. If you came in with something unacceptable, you were given a hat or kitchen shirt or apron to put over it, and if you came in with an unacceptable type of skirt or pants or shorts you were sent out to change and docked in hours if you didn't make them up by working later, if possible. These rules exist all over Madison, so this man's case is not isolated, and it wasn't instituted by Scott Walker, it is par for the course in Madison. In fact, some businesses would greatly pressure their employees to wear "appropriate shirts" on game days and would make a real stink if you refused--and this included the campus and places that had active unions and the union leaders were KNOWN to join in pressuring workers to do that!!

So let's dispel the myth that Walker is the only one responsible for clothing rules in Madison...Madison is actually worse than most areas when it comes to dress codes, liberal as it is. I was almost in trouble for wearing a certain type of t shirt to work once and "called out" by a union employee and I had to point out I was on my way IN work and was going to CHANGE when I got there and told her she had no right to fuss over what I wore outside the workplace. She made it clear that if she could, she would force me to stay away from certain types of clothes and designs outside the work place. Thank goodness Madison hasn't gotten that crazy...yet.So there is an example of a union worker also going overboard with (me) a worker wearing something OUTSIDE the work place. I don't even remember what it was that offended her...oh wait...it could have been some type of flag or patriotic t shirt or even religious. But I never wore my religion on my sleeve at work like some of the others did, especially the moslems.

"The measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he never would be found out"-Macaulay

Oh and by the way, the "singers" were the ONLY ones demonstrating in the Capital WITHOUT a permit. all other groups have to have a permit. In or outside. The protestors tore up the grass and disrupted the tours in the Capital so people stopped going (I was one of them) on tours or frequenting the farmer's market. The farmers lost a lot of profit that year and they and the businesses said the protestors were demanding free food from them. THeir signs were so profane I refused to take my kids anywhere near there. They have a right to protest, but they defecated in the Capital in other places besides the bathrooms, camped out on the lawn and sidewalks, screamed at people walking by, tore up the flower beds and some teachers replaced the beautiful flowers with ugly plants that looked like weeds, they did over $100,000 worth of damage to the building itself. I have a picture worth a thousand words. It has people camping out with gander mountain gear, the latest fashions, coolers and a sedgeway, and a sign that reads "trickle, trickle, not even a nickel" and I thought: If you are poor, what are you doing with expensive clothes, gander mountain tents and chairs and gear and raybans and coolers, and a sedgeway??? I get all my camping stuff from Wal Mart and my food from places like aldis, my sunglasses from walgreens, and why would I rent or buy a sedgeway when I could walk, the people sitting there weren't disabled or so overweight (they were actually quite buff and looked like they had visited BOTH a salon and a tanning spa--I can spot people whose appearances scream "expensive lifestyle" a mile away!) that they would need a sedgeway! I thought: "If THIS is your typical protestor then no wonder Scott Walker thought they could afford to pay a little more of a percentage of their union benefits!" I thought about asking where they work or what government job they had that they could afford such stuff, but I thought I would get a hostile response.

"The measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he never would be found out"-Macaulay

Oh yeah and you should see some of the houses the teachers and university professors live in. Let me tell you, you won't find one like them in Tomahawk....If they are mortgaged, they deserve to be foreclosed upon, because some of them are brand new, really swanky, three stories high, with swimming pools or acre length meticulously manicured gardens, and some are owned by couples that have NO KIDs or aging parents living with them. Maybe they don't like the property taxes, which are high in Madison, but then why do they continue to vote Democrat? Walker's party DID lower their property taxes...they did OURS. We left only because of no jobs (they like college students and high schoolers too much, not "old" folks like us) and we just plain got SICK of Madison. We won't send our kids to school there, either. The second to the last Mifflin street block party saw 11 girls in UW Hospital having been raped after being given ecstasy or way too many drinks and most of their clothes stolen along with their backpacks or purses. Most students that go in virgins and never having had a beer or "hit" in their life end up messed up by their second year. I know, I ended up meeting and talking to a lot of those kids while on the job and living near the campus. If you love your daughters especially, don't send them there, it isn't any better for a girl than Chicago, Milwaukee, Beloit or Janesville.

"The measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he never would be found out"-Macaulay